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Over at @theverge.com, @seangon.bsky.social and I wrote about how billionaires hijacked a generational $42.5 billion program intended to dramatically improve internet access. Republicans stripped away all affordability and equity requirements, and are turning it into a slush fund.

This money was originally slated to fund a lot of future-proof fiber. The program also had provisions to ensure these networks were affordable and equitably deployed to poor and minority neighborhoods.

Republicans stripped all that language out and are throwing billions at Jeff Bezos and Elon Musk for expensive, slower, satellite service they had either ALREADY DEPLOYED, or already planned to deploy. Curiously I don't think any major outlet had bothered to explain this all yet.

Ohio's final BEAD plan hands 49% of the state's 83,000 approved BEAD locations to SpaceX, and leaves $450 mil in limbo. No media anywhere in the state has written a word about it. @davedewitt.bsky.social where are you?